What annoys at times is the logo protect the NHS keep to the rules. Trouble is the local hospital QA in Portsmouth is very often full up this time of year. My wife last Feb went into with suspected Cardiac problem to A&E there, spent the night on a trolley at the back of A&E behind a cotton screen, having to put with screaming drunks etc. But when you look into it, the number of beds per capita is twice the number in Germany to here. Portsmouth once had 5 x hospitals, a big Victorian one sold for building on, St Marys another big hospital which straddled the road from Fratton to Southsea, St James a mental Hospital sold off for conversion into posh flats, all that was kept was the small one on the Hill called Queen Alexandra, that did have about ten large geriatric wards, when they enlarged with a PFI grant those wards were demolished and it has less beds. Now Southampton General has to pay Q.A a large cash sum each year along with Chichester and Winchester hospitals. When the RCN persuaded the government to abolish in house training of Nurses and put the training out to Hospitals for year 2000. The Government jumped at it, then people who got their degrees for some years were only short term contracts of 8,10 months, alot went else where such as police etc, which caused a shortage, with the NHS having to go oversea to recruit. So now the politicians have a perfect storm caused by some years of salami cutting.
